State Budget Cuts

Although the states have already suffered greatly from the recent budget cuts, we are going to be suffering even more. Apparently this is the year that hits bottom, as our economy is also grim right now. California, with it's phenomenal governor of Schwarzennegger, has had to suffer greatly. The republicans are all for taking money from the schools and keeping it to themselves. It's most likely not challenging to figure out where I stand on this matter. Although part of me is reserved and wants the money in my family's pocket to stay in our pocket, I know how important education is. I go to one of the best high schools in the state of California and have learned more in these last three years than ever before in my life. My school is a public school and we are funded by the government. Although most republicans have no need for public schools considering they have the money to send their children to private schools, the lower income families need the same chance at education. By putting less and less funding into our schools just makes the future of America look grim. If only a select few are educated, there will be a heavy bias, and knowledge waiting to be unearthed will remain hidden.

The 2010 Deficit is Still Astronomical, Estimating 1.5 Trillion Debt

So for the new year, instead of new jobs and a better outlook on life, the rate of unemployment is still expected to rise from 9.5% to 10% (Bernanke) even though it's said the U.S. is coming out of the longest recession in 50 years (Geithner). Unfortunately for those unemployed Americans, it just means more long months with little to no income.

So the big question is: How do we get out of this hole? And by that 'we' I mean the United States as a whole; not just the middle class. Because as of now, the main victims of this recession are the middle class. The low income population is voided from most taxes, as is living on a low income in America is near impossible. The wealthy population donates little of their income to the matter; even though they make the most money, they use it to buy middle-life crisis cars instead of putting their 'hard-earned' money to a real benefit for the country. Well all I can say to these wealthy folks, good luck in the future when the American Empire has fallen and we all have to move to a foreign country where we are scoffed at for being such 'materialistic, unpatriotic Americans'. Because that's really what it is, not giving aid to your country when it most needs your help, and you have the cash to flash, is unpatriotic.

But what if the American country came up with a new part to the system. What if we installed a flat tax to those who are financially stable. Perhaps, a 7% income tax for all the middle to upper classes. I mean, 7% of a seventy-thousand dollar income is smaller than 7% of a one-million dollar income; the numbers might not be the same, but the proportion is. And if I remember correctly in the Declaration of Independence it states, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal". Well if the middle and upper class each take a 7% hit, that sounds equal to me.

Relating the idea of a flat tax to the current United States problem is simple. If we simply installed the low tax rate to anyone with a stable income, America could rise out of this recession like smoke rises in the sky.

In any case, if I haven't given you enough facts to make you think then let's relate it more close to home. In my house close to 50% of the income never makes it to the house because of the taxes. Now if both upper classes were charged a 50% rate there wouldn't be a problem, but it's not so. The middle class pays more when they have less, and the upper class pays less when they have more.

America's Debt and the Affect on Black Friday

As we all know, the United States financial status hasn't been this dangerous since the depression due to several events. First of all the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq paired with the lower taxes really set us into the mode. Then the giant Google stock market crash and the trade agreements that we signed caused massive job losses and stagnant wages. Although fighting major revenue loss the cost operations continued to sore due to energy cost. The real estate market was booming on unstable loans counting on significant wage increases. When wage increases didn't not reach the expectations the real estate market collapsed therefore leaving the United States at a crucial pass. We then bailed out the financial institutions, putting further financial strain on the economy and government. When Bush took over the presidential office, the Clintons had the country in the black; by the end of Bush's term we were so far in the red it was incredible that just one man could destroy such a stable, prosperous country.

The friday after Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday; its a day when passionate consumers wake up at ungodly hours and wait in line for those great sales on items such as a Williams-Sonoma salad spinner they don't even need but can get at the lowest price of the season. Even though our economy is in terrible condition with a multi-trillion, growing, dollar debt the expectations were that the country would still find a way to spend 2.5 percent more on Black Friday than last year($41.2 billion). On an average in 2008 people spent in the mid to high three hundreds per person. This year could have been classified at disappointing because our country spent about the same amount as we did last year. I think that its surprising that we even spent that much due to the economic status.

Criticism Against a Powerful Woman Manages to Offend the Entire Female Gender

Brooksley Born was the one person to say that America was heading into an economic disaster; her colleagues completely shut her and her opinions down. They wanted to keep her quite and that is exactly what they did. But the real problem was even after the economy started failing the people responsible for the failure still didn't fully acknowledge Born. They still criticized her; but this time she was criticized for petty things such as her sex and her attitude. She was called cold and hard to work with by many people, but the real insult was when she was criticized for her gender. To think how far the United States has come in the prejudice against women, it's hard to hear insults passed against a brilliant woman trying to help the country. Even though Born graduated top of her class from Stanford Law School, her sex is still a topic that comes up.

Others find a whiff of sexism in the pushback.“The messenger wore a skirt,” says Marna Tucker, a Washington lawyer and a longtime friend of Born. “Could Alan Greenspan take that?”

It's hard to believe that gown men would drop to such low blows as to insult a women when they were so clearly wrong and she was so clearly right.